


The Aftermath (Agere Janus, Caregiver Patton)

by DannyisDone



Series: Agere Janus and Remus Human AU [4]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Age Play Caregiver Morality | Patton Sanders, Age Play Little Deceit | Janus Sanders, Age Regression, Age Regression/De-Aging, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Human AU, Hurt/Comfort, If more tags are needed please let me know, Light Angst, Non-Sexual Age Play, Sympathetic Deceit | Janus Sanders, Triggers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:14:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28888944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DannyisDone/pseuds/DannyisDone
Summary: This story contains Age Regression and is NOT sexual!This is a continuation of the story 'A Trip to the Store (Agere Janus)'After the incident at the store, Janus has been trying to keep himself from regressing. However, when he comes across a video that reminds him of times past, he drops and Patton's there to help him through it.+++Warnings: Crying, Triggers, Janus says and thinks some poor things about his regression so do be careful when reading.
Relationships: Deceit | Janus Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders
Series: Agere Janus and Remus Human AU [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2042323
Comments: 6
Kudos: 45





	The Aftermath (Agere Janus, Caregiver Patton)

**Author's Note:**

> This is actually not a story but a reminder to myself to mention some of the things that have been triggering me in therpay! /j 
> 
> In serious though, I do hope you like the story! I wanted some more cute baby janus but also start on the path towards what janus's ultimate goal is in this whole au, which is to go to therapy and work out some of his issues there
> 
> Also, there is am authors note at the end of the story that I would love to hear your thoughts, or just your thoughts in general on the story 
> 
> okay thanks bye!! <3

Janus sat curled up on the recliner in the living room, scrolling through social media without much thought. Though it was only noon, he was considering heading off to his room to take a nap, mostly because he didn’t think anything would maintain his interest. He had a hard time entertaining himself when Remus wasn’t around and he didn’t have to go to work. Patton was home, so he could go out of his way to try and hang out with him...But he was sure that if he spent the day with just Patton, it would eventually end up with him regressing. He’d been avoiding it ever since the incident at the store. It had left him feeling way too vulnerable and uneasy. So he just wanted a break. Patton understood that and respected that boundary, but Janus had been fighting his headspace for the past two days, refusing comforts that would normally help him ease down. Patton just so happened to be one of those comforts. 

Speaking of Patton. 

“Hey!” Patton called as he came down the stairs, smiling and waving at Janus. He was bundled up in his winter clothes, minus his jacket and hat. Janus raised an eyebrow at the getup. 

“Are you leaving?” He asked, curious if he would have the house to himself. He had taken Remus to work an hour ago, and Logan was at the university teaching. Janus was pretty sure that Patton had said he’d have the day off though. He’d been at work at the hospital for the past four days and was supposed to have the next three off. But due to his line of work, that could change at any second. Maybe he’d been called in for an emergency?

“No, I’m just going to go outside to shovel the driveway so that Logan doesn’t have to deal with it when he comes home,” Patton explained. He made his way over to Janus, who sat up a bit straighter as the man approached. He was always being scolded for his terrible posture. 

“You have any plans?” Patton asked. He hadn’t failed to notice that Janus had been a bit distant with him ever since the incident at the store. It was like he’d put the baby to bed, and the next day he wanted nothing to do with him. He tried not to take it personally, of course. Janus was dealing with a lot and Patton wanted to give him the room to deal with it on his own, though he made sure to constantly assure Janus that he didn’t have to deal with it on his own, that he could always come to Patton. Whether he needed some Papa cuddles or a friend to listen to, Patton was willing to be there no matter what. 

“No, I was supposed to pick Remus up after work, but Logan said he’d just stay on campus until his shift ended. I might take a nap.” He explained, watching as Patton nodded along. 

“Alright kiddo, if you need anything just come out and holler, okay?” Patton offered, and watched with concerned eyes as Janus dismissed the offer, waving his hand. That’s when Patton also noticed that Janus was wrapped up in a grey and black plaid jacket. 

“Are you cold? We can turn the heat up if you want.” Patton said, already walking towards the thermostat. Janus merely shrugged at the suggestion, but found himself fiddling with the sleeves of the hoodie. 

“I’m not that cold, just like this jacket.” He explained, but Patton was already turning the heat up. Janus just sighed, knowing he had to allow Patton a bit of coddling. Patton seemed to thrive on helping others, and it made Janus wonder if the other had a caregiver headspace that was going overlooked, but he was much too embarrassed to bring it up to Patton alone. Once satisfied with the room temperature, Patton nodded and turned his attention back to Janus. The younger of the two gave just another short nod of acknowledgement, before looking back into his phone

“Again, I’ll be outside if you need me,” Patton said, lingering just a moment to see if Janus would respond. Janus merely nodded, not even looking up. Patton let out a small sighed, before he turned to the front door to retrieve his coat and hat and head outside. He wasn’t sure why he was so hesitant to leave Janus alone. He was an adult and in his adult headspace, he would be fine. But ever since the incident Patton had been feeling quite overprotective of both of his friends. Heck, even Logan hadn’t escaped Patton’s worryful coddling, Patton had packed him his lunch this morning. But as he headed out, he decided he would come back in to periodically check on Janus. Call it a Dad feeling, but Patton was worried that today might be a hard one for Janus.

Once Patton was outside, Janus took a moment to sigh, a weight he hadn’t felt before settling on his shoulders when Patton was out of sight. He rubbed his left temple with his free hand, trying to will away the cottony feeling in his mind. Even just those briefest of moments with Patton had left him feeling just the slightest bit smaller. It would be so easy too, but he didn’t want to regress. He didn’t want to be a bother, and he certainly didn’t want everyone to think of him as weak when he couldn’t handle one stupid incident at the store. It had been over a week, he shouldn't still be so hung up on it...

He tried to push all thoughts of that away. Despite what he had earlier thought, a nap would probably be the worst thing to do now. He would most likely end up overthinking his problems if he was left alone with his thoughts, as he tended to do. He needed a distraction. If he was doing something mindless, then he could keep his thoughts far from the incident. Social media was his typical go to distraction, so he decided to just stay curled up on the couch. He made himself comfortable on the recliner once more, burrowing in his jacket and focusing on the videos he was scrolling through. 

He was on the same app for probably an hour, though Janus hardly noticed the time pass. He was prone to zoning out, scrolling just to get to the next video, but rarely retaining what he had just watched. He wasn’t aware of much of anything going on around him. He didn’t register that he was chewing on the sleeves of his jacket, or that he was curled tightly up on a ball. He only spared a glance at the clock every once in a while, but then he’d have to recheck it, since he hadn’t bothered to commit the time to his memory. He was lost in distraction, barely focused on what he was watching and more so waiting to get the punchline of each video before he would scroll to the next one. It was mindless, and he’d probably scold Remus if he saw the other doing exactly what he was doing now. However, it served his purpose well. He was no longer thinking about regression or about the store, he was just waiting for the next video to start. 

The words on the screen read ‘Pretending to hate my boyfriend challenge’, which to Janus seemed like the dumbest challenge in the world. He didn’t understand the trend of ‘Tricking my loved one’. He didn’t find it entertaining or funny at all. But he watched through the video anyways, mostly because he was barely paying attention to anything he was consuming at this point. 

Or, he hadn’t been paying attention, until the girl in the video started screaming at her boyfriend. It pulled Janus out of his mindlessness almost immediately. The girl was screaming at her boyfriend, telling him all the things she hated about him. She said he was lazy, uncaring, and talked about his interests too much. She even at one point seemed to pull back to hit him. Janus watched the video in abject horror, before he was suddenly tossing his phone to the side. He hated the sound of her yelling, hated the way he could hear the man in the background telling her to stop. 

He started rocking, though he didn’t register that he was doing it. He was getting lost in his own head as memories flooded his mind. He closed his eyes tightly, hoping the video would end, but it seemed to be looping, starting over with the cheesy voice over reading the title of the video once more. He didn’t register the soft whimper that came out of him when the video started again. He just needed the video to stop!

He finally managed to get back in his body long enough to reach for his phone from where he had thrown it. He quickly turned it off, before tossing the dreaded thing once more. He hated that he could feel tears pricking his eyes. He hated that he felt so vulnerable when all that had triggered this reaction was some stupid video of some stupid teens doing some stupid prank. And he hated that he could practically hear his mother now, screaming and yelling at him or his dad or anyone who was unlucky enough to face her wrath. It wasn’t fair, why did the smallest of things have to make him feel so scared?

He was rocking hard now, aided by the softness of the back of the couch. He was halfway between regressing and a panic attack, and his brain didn’t feel clear enough for him to make a conscious decision about it. He hated this. Hated that something as inconsequential as a video online could trigger this reaction. He could feel betraying tears fall down his face, his subconscious seeming to make the decision for him about whether he would regress or not. He felt very small and very upset, because he knew he wasn’t supposed to be regressing! He’d been fighting it off, and now it was happening outside of his control. 

He jumped when he heard the door opening, having once again found himself lost in thoughts ranging from ‘Why are you like this?’ too ‘Remember how mom would grab you when she screamed?’. He was a mess of emotions, and it didn’t help that new thoughts of ‘You’re a freak’ and ‘Are you always going to regress when things like this happen?’ that he’d never had before now plagued his mind as well. His tearful eyes shot towards the door, feeling that deep rooted need to ‘Run and hide’ once more overwhelm him, but then his eyes settled on Patton, who was bundled up warmly and covered in a thin layer of snow. He wanted to cry even more now, both from relief that he was here, and anguish that he was found. 

Patton didn’t notice right away that state Janus was in, too busy trying to get out of his too warm coat. He had decided it would be a good time to come in to check on Janus, though he had mostly been motivated by the snow that had begun to fall. He smiled brightly when he was once more in just his sweater, though that smile didn’t last when he started into the living room and saw the state his friend was in. 

“Janus?” Patton said, moving towards the other quickly, though kept his distance just a bit so as not to begin to crowd him. Janus had been watching his movements carefully ever since he’d walked in through the door. Patton looked around for signs of what might be causing the distress. He noticed the discarded phone, and began to wonder if maybe Janus had seen or read something that had triggered him.

“Can you tell me what’s wrong, Jay?” Janus’s eyes flickered to the phone, confirming Patton’s suspicions that it was the cause of the other’s panic. Janus continued his rocking, a sign that he was at least managing to self soothe. Patton thought over his next moves carefully. 

“Okay, I want to help. But I need you to be very honest, okay?” Patton’s words were like honey, slow and sweet. “Do you need Patton help, or do you need Papa help?” Patton asked.

If Janus wasn’t regressed, then it wouldn’t do any good for Patton to scoop him up and hold him, because he wouldn’t like the action. If he was regressed, then breathing exercise and talking it out would probably be too much to ask of him. And if he was somewhere in between, well, Patton wasn’t sure what to do in a situation like that. Janus seemed to mull over the question in his mind. 

Because Janus wasn’t totally sure what kind of help he wanted or needed. If he gave in to his little side, which was probably the easier thing since he was on the verge of dropping, then it would feel like a step backwards. He didn’t want to regress everytime something triggered him or whenever a noise was too loud or someone was just a bit insensitive. But if he fought to stay big, he would be denying himself the comfort and security he was so desperately craving right now. Because when he’s small, these thoughts don’t haunt him as much, and he doesn’t have to worry about someone yelling at him or making him feel like he has to run, because the only people in his life when he’s small is Daddy, Papa, and Remus, and they were all safe. 

That seemed to make up his mind. 

“P-Papa.” Janus whimpered out, and it was like a switch was flipped for Patton, now that he knew Janus was little. Patton moved closer to the couch and sat down on it, still keeping just a bit of distance, before opening his arms for Janus. 

“Come here baby,” Patton said, and if Janus saying ‘Papa’ was like a switch for him, then Patton calling Janus ‘baby’ was a whole lever for the regressor. Up until this point he had been fairly quiet, but now he was wailing as he stood up and ran over to Patton, placing himself in the other’s lap. Patton wrapped his arms around Janus and held him close, rocking back and forth like he’d seen Janus doing, knowing that both his boys used rocking as a self soother. Janus laid his head on Patton’s shoulder as the other began to card his fingers through Janus’s hair. 

“There there, it’s okay. You’re safe here.” Patton whispered, before letting his words turn into hums, something he did sometimes for the two when they were upset. The effect on Janus was immediate, calming him down to quiet tears. They stayed like that for a few minutes, rocking and holding onto one another. At one point Janus’s thumb found its way into his mouth, and Patton wished he had thought to keep some little gear around in case something like this happened. Not that he had really expected it. Janus hadn’t regressed much in the past few days, but Patton had just assumed he didn’t need to.

“Do you wanna talk about it, sweetheart?” Patton asked, already assuming the answer to be no, considering the state Janus seemed to be in. Which is why he was fairly surprised when Janus nodded, pulling his thumb out of his mouth.

“Don’ like yellin’.” He admitted, his eyes looking towards his phone once more. “Scary.” He said, before cuddling back down into Patton, clearly done with the explanation. Patton nodded in understanding, before simply going back to cradling Janus close. 

“Well, you’re safe here, baby. No one’s going to let you get hurt.” Patton couldn’t help the ‘Again’ that plagued his mind. He sighed, before simply going back to gently comforting the little in his arms. They stayed in that position for a while, and Patton was sure that Janus would fall asleep right here on his lap if he could. But Patton still had things he needed to do, and it probably wouldn’t be all that comfortable of a nap anyways. 

“Why don’t you lay down on the couch and take a nap, sweetheart. Papa can go get your Bebe and a paci.” He suggested, already moving Janus to try and help him lay down. He was met with whines of protest, but found that that was the extent of the fight Janus was willing to put up. With a light chuckle, Patton managed to get Janus laid down on the couch. He petted Janus’s head very softly before throwing one of the spare blankets they kept in the living room over him. He then went into Janus’s room to retrieve his new snake stuffie, which he had lovingly called Bebe, and his pacifier. By the time Patton was back in the living room, Janus was already closing his eyes. 

“Here you go, Jay.” Patton whispered, tucking Bebe in his arms, while placing the pacifier on the coffee table, in case he wanted it. But the little seemed tuckered out, which came as no surprise. It seemed Janus always got tired after having trigger episodes. Patton sighed at the thought. It must be so hard, having so many things in the world that can make one feel so small and scared. All Patton could ever hope to do is try and make his friends feel safe. 

Patton decided not to go back outside and finish the shoveling, not wanting to leave Janus alone in case he woke up regressed. He decided to busy himself with a book, staying in the living room so he could be nearby. He wouldn’t let Janus sleep too late though, since it would ruin his already precarious sleep schedule, deciding that he would wake Janus up after about an hour and thirty minutes, which was plenty long for a nap. 

Janus ended up rolling off the couch just an hour in. 

Patton gasped when he saw it happen, jumping up from his spot in the recliner and hurrying over. But Janus waved a dismissive hand. 

“I’m fine,” He mumbled out, and Patton could tell right away he was no longer regressed. He took a step back, but his words didn’t wash away the concerned look Patton wore on his face. 

“That was quite a tumble.” Patton said as Janus stood himself up, stretching his body to get the sleep out of it.

“I’m fine Pat, I promise.” Janus said, before bending down to pick up the blanket and stuffie that had fallen with him. He began to fold the blanket back up. 

Patton nodded, before moving to sit back down in the recliner, though his eyes never left Janus. He watched as the other carefully placed the blanket back in its spot, before he sat on the couch, loving petting Bebe, though his eyes remained distant. Patton wondered what could be on his mind. 

“I don’t know what to do…” Janus started, and Patton realized they were about to have a serious conversation. He quickly folded the corner of the page he was on in his book, and set it aside, giving his full attention to Janus. 

“About what?” Patton asked, hoping to get him to elaborate.

“About...About my regressing every time something triggers me. It was already bad before the whole incident at the store, and now I feel unsafe with so many things.” He confessed. Patton noted the way his hands shook a bit. 

“It’s not that I want to stop regressing, that clearly doesn’t work…” He said, thinking about how this week had gone. He’d tried not regressing, and all it managed to do was make it easier for him to regress when something triggered him. “But I want to feel more in control.” He ended the thought with a sigh, unsure if he was making any sense. When he looked at Patton, he was nodding, and looking at Janus with soft eyes. 

“Have you considered going to therapy?” Patton offered. As his friend, there was only so much he could provide for the other. Even if he wanted to do more, he wasn’t exactly equipped with the tools needed. However, Janus snorted at the question. 

“And tell someone that sometimes I become a toddler and I literally have no control over myself? Yeah right.” He felt like Patton would agree with that, so he was shocked when Patton immediately got defensive. 

“Kiddo, they’d be understanding of that. It’s how you deal with trauma.” He explained, not that he needed to. Patton knew Janus knew that, so he wasn’t sure why he was being so cruel about his regression all of a sudden. 

“Well, what if they aren’t? What if they tell me it’s weird and that I should learn how to deal with my stress better?” He asked, and his eyes were getting wet again, but this was the fire hot anger of adult Janus, who was terrified of being judged and mortified at the thought that someone might see him as weak, or a freak. 

Patton could sense the tension, and tried his best at working Janus back down. “Jay, if that was the case, we’d find you a more understanding therapist. And maybe you don’t have to even mention your regression, or at least not right away. You could just talk about what triggers you, and about your past. Therapy is a good thing, I promise. I go.” That last sentence was just a reminder, Janus already knew that Patton went to therapy. Janus sighed, his shoulders relaxing just a bit. It wasn’t a bad idea, and god knows he probably should have been in therapy years ago, and would have if he could have afforded it. 

“Maybe...” He said, before sighing. “I just...wish this was easier.” He said. 

“I wish it was easier for you too. And therapy is a good first step.” Patton said, before standing up and walking over to where Janus was sitting. He sat down right beside him and hugged his friend, which Janus quickly reciprocated. 

“And you don’t have to do it alone. I’m always gonna be here for you, big or small.” Patton reminded him, and Janus seemed to appreciate the reminder, pulling Patton even closer. 

“Thank you.” Janus said, his voice cracking a bit. Patton could only smile. 

“Your welcome, Jay.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!! Here's the thought I had:
> 
> So i have a lot of this au planned out, and I was wondering if people would be interested in seeing a timeline of this au? It would obviously contain spoilers for plot points that I plan on writing, but readers would be able to have some brief background information about the characters and what they've been through and stuff. I was considering making it so people had context for certain parts of the au that haven't been written yet, but since everything is in my head, if people don't want that then I won't make it lol I would probably post it on my tumblr and link it at the end of the stories in the au so people can look at it. 
> 
> Anyways, leave your thoughts if you have any! And if not, here's another thanks for reading and for being super cool <3


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